Oregon Business License Requirements for an LLC

An Oregon business license gives your Limited Liability Company (LLC) permission to operate in a certain location or within a specific industry.

We can’t walk you through any applicable license applications step-by-step, because every business is unique. But we do provide helpful resources like:

• information about state licensing rules
• instructions for researching municipal licenses

And if you want to just hire a company to do the research for you, we have a recommendation below.

Oregon Business License Requirements

After you form an Oregon LLC, you may need to obtain a business license or permit.

Your requirements are determined by the industry you are in and where your Oregon Limited Liability Company is located.

Because of the large number of industries and all of the municipalities in Oregon, it’s not possible for us to explain them all. However, you can use the search tools below, call your local municipality, or hire a company for help.

How to get a Business License in Oregon

You can obtain a business license in Oregon by applying with the relevant licensing or regulatory agency. The agency you apply with will depend on where your business is located and what business activities it engages in.

The business license application typically requires basic information, such as your LLC name, EIN Number, business address, and contact information. Many also include a questionnaire that asks about your business activity.

There are three main licensing jurisdictions:

• State licensing
• Local licensing, such as county, city, township, etc.
• Federal licensing

Does Oregon Require a Business License?

That depends on where your business is located, and what it does.

There are two types of state-level business licenses:

• a general business license
• and an occupational license

Oregon General Business License

Some states have a general license requirement, which means all businesses operating in those states must have the license, regardless of what they do.

But good news: Oregon doesn’t require a general license to do business in the state.

Meaning, your Oregon LLC doesn’t need a general state business license. But depending on what type of business you run, your LLC might need an occupational license (aka “industry-specific” license).

Oregon Occupational License

Most states have occupational business license requirements. This means a license or permit may be required depending on what your business does or what your occupation is. For example, if you sell used cars, or run a hair salon, you may need an occupational business license. But a license may not be required for other types of businesses.

The Oregon Business Xpress License Directory has an interactive tool to help you determine if your Oregon business needs an occupational license or permit, and which agency to contact about applying for the license.

Type keywords about your LLC’s business activities into the License Search (for ex.: “food truck”, “child care”, or “accountant”.) The system will generate a list of licenses and permits for you to review to see if they apply to your Oregon LLC.

You can look through this list of regulator agencies to see if your industry or occupation needs a business license in Oregon.

And this guide on how to Apply for your Trade License will tell you about certain occupations and industries that need an Oregon business license and help you figure out how to apply.

You can also contact the Office of Small Business Assistance with questions.

Note: Oregon business licenses are not issued by the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State is responsible for business entity administration, for example Limited Liability Company formation.

How much is an Oregon Business License?

Oregon doesn’t have a general business license at the state level, so there are no fees there.

However, your business may need a state-level occupational license or municipal-level license or permit to operate. The filing fee for these licenses will vary depending on where you’re doing business and what industry you’re in. To be honest, we can’t predict your specific Oregon business license cost.

For example, licenses issued by a county that contains a large city are usually more expensive than licenses in less populated, rural counties. And licenses for regulated industries, like child care facilities, are usually more expensive than generic business licenses.

But your LLC might not need a license or permit at all. So your Oregon business license cost could be $0.

See LLC Cost in Oregon to learn about all the possible LLC fees.

Municipal Business License

Municipal business licenses can be issued by the city, town, county, parish, township, borough, etc. We refer to all of these as a “municipality” to keep things simple.

There are two types of municipal business licenses:

• general business license
• industry-specific license

For example, if a municipality has a general business license requirement, all businesses operating in that municipality must have the license, regardless of what they do.

And if a municipality has industry-specific business licenses, a license or permit may be required depending on what your business does. For example, if you operate a food truck, or run a daycare, you may need an industry-specific municipal business license. Or if you’re purchasing or leasing real estate, you may need a zoning permit.

But a license may not be required for other types of businesses, like making wedding invitation templates or offering marketing consulting.

You can contact your municipality to check on their local licensing requirements:

• Association of Oregon Counties: Oregon Counties
• Oregon.gov: Oregon Counties (scroll down)
• League of Oregon Cities: City Directory

Oregon Sales Tax License

Unlike most states, Oregon doesn’t have a general sales or use tax. So most businesses don’t need to get a sales tax license from the Oregon Department of Revenue.

However, if you buy goods outside Oregon to resell them inside Oregon, your LLC must file the Business Registry Resale Certificate with the Department of Revenue.

And make sure you review all the Business Tax Reporting Requirements in Oregon to make sure your LLC files everything that’s required.

Do I need any federal business licenses?

Most businesses in Oregon don’t need a federal business license. However, certain industries do need federal licenses:

Check out the Small Business Administration’s Licenses and Permits page for a full list of industries with federal license requirements.

If your business isn’t one of these special cases, then the only federal requirements are that your LLC get an Oregon EIN Number (aka Federal Employer Identification Number) and that you file taxes.

Oregon Business License FAQs

Matt Horwitz

Founder & Educator, LLC University®

Matt Horwitz is the leading expert on LLC education, and has been teaching for 15 years. He founded LLC University in 2010 after realizing people needed simple and actionable instructions to start an LLC. He's cited by Entrepreneur Magazine, Yahoo Finance, and the US Chamber of Commerce, and was featured by CNBC and InventRight.
 
Matt holds a Bachelor's Degree in business from Drexel University with a concentration in business law. He performs extensive research and analysis to convert state laws into simple instructions anyone can follow to form their LLC - all for free! Read more about Matt Horwitz and LLC University.